Main Street Research LLC Sells 100,665 Shares of Microsoft Corporation $MSFT

Main Street Research LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) by 59.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,542 shares of the software giant’s stock after selling 100,665 shares during the quarter. Microsoft makes up 1.5% of Main Street Research LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Main Street Research LLC’s holdings in Microsoft were worth $25,002,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC raised its holdings in Microsoft by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 59 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Bernzott Capital Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Timmons Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Microsoft by 287.0% in the fourth quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the software giant’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Microsoft during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. 71.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Microsoft news, CEO Judson Althoff sold 15,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.99, for a total value of $7,145,345.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 110,477 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $50,928,792.23. This trade represents a 12.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Takeshi Numoto sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $402.84, for a total transaction of $1,812,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 47,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,122,009.12. The trade was a 8.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 23,762 shares of company stock worth $10,508,361 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Microsoft

Here are the key news stories impacting Microsoft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft expanded its partnership with Databricks through the 2030s, deepening integrations across Azure, Microsoft 365, Teams and Copilot and reinforcing its cloud and AI ecosystem. Microsoft (MSFT) Expands Partnership with AI Firm Databricks
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft also deepened ties with AI startup Mistral, adding another strategic AI partner and broadening its footprint in regulated industries and Europe. Microsoft and Mistral expand strategic partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Microsoft committed $60 million and Azure compute credits to the U.S. Department of Energy’s “Genesis Mission,” highlighting ongoing investment in AI-for-science initiatives and government relationships. Microsoft commits $60M to ‘Genesis Mission’
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remained constructive, with Truist reiterating a buy rating and a $575 price target, suggesting substantial upside if earnings and AI demand remain solid. Analyst note on Microsoft

Microsoft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MSFT opened at $381.58 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $399.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $408.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.83 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Microsoft Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $349.20 and a fifty-two week high of $555.45.

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The software giant reported $4.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.06 by $0.21. Microsoft had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 39.34%.The company had revenue of $82.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.46 EPS. Microsoft’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Microsoft Corporation will post 16.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Microsoft Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. Microsoft’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $646.00 price target on shares of Microsoft in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Microsoft in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Dbs Bank dropped their target price on Microsoft from $678.00 to $573.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Microsoft from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Microsoft from $593.00 to $571.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Forty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $555.40.

About Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation is a global technology company headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft develops, licenses and supports a broad range of software products, services and devices for consumers, enterprises and governments worldwide. Its operations span personal computing, productivity software, cloud infrastructure, enterprise applications, developer tools and gaming.

Microsoft’s product portfolio includes the Windows operating system and the Microsoft 365 suite of productivity and collaboration tools (Office apps, Outlook, Teams).